Lumbar Transforaminal Epidural Steroid Injections

Evaluating Nerve Pain

Steroid injections for lower back pain deposit medication at the nerve root to alleviate pain at its source. A lumbar transforaminal epidural steroid injection is one such treatment, and it’s also a diagnostic tool. Physicians use this type of injection to detect which nerves are causing pain.

The benefits of this procedure may be immediate or gradual, and repeat injections may be necessary. At American Pain Consortium in Indianapolis, we may recommend this procedure for patients who have a herniated spinal disc or pinched nerve.

About Lumbar Transforaminal Epidural Steroid Injections

This outpatient procedure is conducted under a local anesthetic. When using this injection to determine which nerve is causing pain, a physician applies medication to several individual nerves in a specific area – if a patient feels no pain relief, the physician repeats the injection, targeting a different nerve each time until the patient reports pain relief.

Recovery Time After Transforaminal Injections

Patients may experience some mild soreness – and in rare cases, numbness or weakness – after this procedure, but most patients can resume normal activity the following day.

Diagnosing & Treating Nerve Pain

Many of our patients come to us because they don’t know what’s causing their chronic pain. With a lumbar transforaminal epidural steroid injection, we can zero in on the source of your pain and develop a treatment plan that helps you feel better.

If you need help with your chronic pain, please contact American Pain Consortium to schedule a consultation.